unjustify

Unjustify is a verb formed from the prefix un- and the noun justify. It generally means to remove or negate justification. In typography and digital typesetting, unjustify refers to changing text from a justified alignment to an unaligned or ragged-right alignment, where the right edge of lines is not forced to match the margins.

In practice, this means turning off inter-word spacing adjustments that equalize line widths, resulting in uneven right margins. In most modern editors and CSS, this effect is achieved by selecting left alignment or ragged-right instead of full justification; there is no universal “unjustify” command, but the result is the same.

In argumentation or policy discourse, unjustify can describe removing the justification for a belief or claim, i.e., demonstrating that a claim is unjustified or unsupported. This usage is uncommon; more frequent phrases include “undercut the justification,” “challenge the justification,” or “disprove the justification.”

Etymology and usage notes: the term derives from un- plus justify and is predominantly found in specialized contexts such as typography, word processing, and certain analytical discussions. It is not a standard term in everyday writing, where people typically describe the result (left alignment, ragged-right) or the act of refuting a claim rather than “unjustifying” it.

See also justification (typesetting), ragged-right, left alignment, text alignment.